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Mount Sinai School Of Medicine Establishes New Department Of Family Medicine And Community Health

National family medicine pioneer, Neil S. Calman, MD, named chair of the department.

New York

– June 7, 2012 /Press Release/ ––

Mount Sinai School of Medicine is proud to announce the establishment of the new Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, opening July 1, 2012. The Department was created in collaboration with the Institute for Family Health, one of the largest networks of community health centers in New York State, and will be chaired by Neil S. Calman, MD, the Institute's President, Chief Executive Officer, and Co-Founder, who is a pioneer in the field of family medicine. Under Dr. Calman, Mount Sinai's new Department of Family Medicine and Community Health will deliver a high standard of family care to the Harlem community, and conduct cutting-edge research and education to eliminate health disparities among the underserved.

"I am thrilled to be joining Mount Sinai, and look forward to expanding our shared mission of providing primary care services to the Harlem community, and training the next generation of family practitioners who will deliver excellent clinical care," said Dr. Calman. "Through our research, we also plan to address disparities in access to care and improve the outcomes of people suffering from conditions of the highest prevalence in urban, medically underserved communities."

Kenneth L. Davis, President and CEO of Mount Sinai Medical Center, said, "Dr. Calman is a visionary in the field of family medicine and we welcome him to the Mount Sinai family. Since he opened his first center in 1983, he has brought considerable awareness to the field of family medicine. His health centers have become models for the entire nation."

A growing number of Mount Sinai's students are in interested in learning about and pursuing a career in family medicine, said Dennis Charney, MD, the Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Dean of Mount Sinai School of Medicine and executive Vice President for Academic Affairs of The Mount Sinai Medical Center. "Dr. Calman will bring years of knowledge and expertise to our medical students as he integrates our training programs into the community. In addition, he will work with our faculty to undertake groundbreaking research into health care disparities in order to help understand why Harlem and other underserved communities have a higher prevalence of disease such as diabetes, obesity, mental illness and cancer.

In his new role at Mount Sinai, Dr. Calman will direct the education of a new generation of family doctors who will be trained at the Institute's new Family Health Center of Harlem and Mount Sinai Hospital. The Family Health Center, located at Madison Avenue and 119th Street, is currently housed in the former North General Hospital, which closed in 2010. The new 37,000-square-foot location is under renovation, and set to open in December. The Center will connect its state-of-the-art medical technology, including the Epic electronic medical record system to Mount Sinai's specialty services and inpatient care services, ensuring continuity and a high level of medical care.

The Center will serve Central and East Harlem, which are ranked among the poorest areas in New York City by the U.S. Census, and federally designated as both a Medically Underserved Area and a Health Professionals Shortage Area.

"We are excited to have Dr. Calman join us as we continue to strengthen our service to the community and expand access to our world-class academic medical center, " said Wayne Keathley, President and Chief Operating Officer of The Mount Sinai Hospital.

At the request of the New York State Department of health, the Institute opened a health center in Harlem at the site of the former North General Hospital when that hospital closed its doors in July 2010. Since then, the Institute has been providing a range of primary care, mental health and dental services, as well as specialty care in pediatrics, OB/GYN, podiatry, cardiology, ophthalmology and HIV care.

Working within close proximity of Mount Sinai enabled Dr. Calman's Institute to collaborate with Mount Sinai on programs such as a Community-based Care Transitions Program award, which is a 5-year, $12.9 million dollar program for Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries that is funded through the Affordable Care Act. The award is to help social workers become more effective in transitions of care with a goal of reducing preventable re-hospitalizations.

About Dr. Calman and the Institute for Family Health

The Institute for Family Health serves more than 80,000 patients annually, at 26 locations, including the Bronx, Lower Manhattan and the Mid-Hudson region. It is one of the largest and most highly acclaimed community health center networks in New York State and the only one recognized by the Health Services and Resources Administration as a Teaching Health Center.

Founded in 1983, the Institute is committed to high quality, affordable health care and accepts all patients including those who are uninsured or undocumented. The Institute is a leader in the fields of health information technology and the elimination of disparities, often combing the two through the use of clinical decision supports and careful documentation that promotes preventive and proactive care. For more information about the Institute, visit www.institute2000.org.

Dr. Calman is a board certified physician who has been practicing in the New York City area for 30 years. The Institute was one of the first community health center networks to implement a fully integrated electronic medical record system in 2002. In recognition of his expertise in information technology infrastructure, and his commitment to using technology in service of the underserved, Dr. Calman was appointed by the Obama Administration to serve on the national Health Information Technology Policy Panel in 2009. Dr. Calman is also the Principal Investigator of Bronx Health REACH/New York Center of Excellence in the Elimination of Disparities, a Centers for Disease Control- funded effort involving more than 70 community and faith-based organizations to eliminate racial and ethnic health disparities in the Bronx.

For his extensive work in public health, Dr. Calman has received many national awards: the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Community Health Leadership Award; the American Academy of Family Physicians' Public Health award; the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society Davies Award in Public Health; and the Pew Charitable Trusts' Primary Care Achievement Award.

In May 2012, Dr. Calman was honored with the Jan Paneth Community Service Award for his pivotal role to the continuation and significant enhancement of ambulatory care for the Harlem community when North General Hospital closed in 2010. The award, named for Jan Paneth who for years a valued advisor to the Mount Sinai Auxiliary Board, recognizes long-term dedication to the health and social well being of the communities served by The Mount Sinai Hospital and Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

About The Mount Sinai Medical Center

The Mount Sinai Medical Center encompasses both The Mount Sinai Hospital and Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Established in 1968, Mount Sinai School of Medicine is one of the leading medical schools in the United States. The Medical School is noted for innovation in education, biomedical research, clinical care delivery, and local and global community service. It has more than 3,400 faculty in 32 departments and 14 research institutes, and ranks among the top 20 medical schools both in National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding and by U.S. News & World Report.

The Mount Sinai Hospital, founded in 1852, is a 1,171-bed tertiary- and quaternary-care teaching facility and one of the nation’s oldest, largest and most-respected voluntary hospitals. In 2011, U.S. News & World Report ranked The Mount Sinai Hospital 16th on its elite Honor Roll of the nation’s top hospitals based on reputation, safety, and other patient-care factors. Of the top 20 hospitals in the United States, Mount Sinai is one of 12 integrated academic medical centers whose medical school ranks among the top 20 in NIH funding and U.S. News & World Report and whose hospital is on the U.S. News & World Report Honor Roll. Nearly 60,000 people were treated at Mount Sinai as inpatients last year, and approximately 560,000 outpatient visits took place.